No tax officer has been authorised to visit premises of traders and shopkeepers without prior permission and any deviation should be reported to a complaint helpline, the finance ministry said in a statement. The government’s clarification follows reports which suggested that some unscrupulous elements posing as GST officers have tried to fleece shopkeepers and customers in the name of GST.

The chief commissioner of GST (Delhi zone) has clarified that the tax department only wants to facilitate the process for shopkeepers and traders during the transition to the GST regime.

“No officer of the department is authorised to visit the premises of traders and shopkeepers without authorisation,” the statement said. It also asked anyone facing any such problem to lodge a complaint on tax department’s phone line, 011-23370115.